Sunday Roundup – October 28

Happy Halloweekend!

Things Cost Time and Money – spinoff post from two posts on Mission Paradox and if you aren’t following that yet, come on. I’ve told you several times now

Upcoming Toronto Fringe Stuff – deadlines deadlines deadlines!

Last week I was on Parliament Hill advocating for the arts. 100+ artists, arts champions and arts workers booked over 100 meetings with MPs from across the country to remind them of the value of the arts in Canada, and to ask for their support. It was a fantastic two days.

To see more about what everyone was doing, who everyone was meeting with and how it went, head over to twitter with #artsday in your pocket.

In just over two weeks I’ll be participating in Arts Day at the City – same as above, municipal level. Looking forward to it – you’ll be able to follow that one with #artsdayTO

Last night was Opera Atelier’s opening of Der Freischütz (The Marksman). Completely beautiful production. Go see if you can.

And tomorrow eve  I’m heading to the Lightbox to see Ron Fricke’s Samsara. More beauty.

Have a great Sunday folks – a reminder that Sue Edworthy Arts Planning is closed November 1 and 2.  It’s that time of year with financial forecasting, client organization (previous and upcoming),  file clean-up and all the bits of admin that need doing. The second day I’ll put on my CEO hat, mon chapeau d’entrepreneuse and do some bigger picture thinking about this venture of mine.

Well, it’s more than one hat, it’s actually six. Try this sometime.

It’s going better than my best dreams of it, and I thank you for that. Looking forward to a day of visioning for the next two years.

Upcoming Toronto Fringe Stuff!

I’m back from Parliament Hill – more on that later. Today – we prepare for things Fringe!

 

Call for Submissions: 2013 Fringe New Play Contest  – TOMORROW

Applications for the 2013 Fringe New Play Contest are now open!

Remember Kim’s Convenience? Remember Help Yourself? These Fringe shows were brought into the spotlight by the Fringe New Play Contest, sponsored by Exclamation Foundation and macIDeas. If you’re a playwright and want to be a household name, the Fringe New Play Contest is the best way to fast-track that success. Even better – this year is Fringe’s 25^th Anniversary, so the media attention will be bigger and bolder than ever! Applications close on Friday October 26^th at 5pm, or when 80 applications are received.

Details are available on the website.

Call for Submissions: TD Culturally Diverse Artists Project Applications

With generous and invaluable support from TD Bank, we are launching the second of a three year pilot project to encourage greater participation in the Fringe Festival by artists who self-identify as culturally diverse.  Our aim is to remove some of the traditional barriers to participation, including financial concerns and a sense of being excluded from mainstream events.

TD’s Culturally Diverse Artists Project applications for the 2013 Toronto Fringe Festival will  close on November 5th.

Click HERE for more information including application inquiries.

Call for Submission: 2013 Lottery Applications

The 2013 Toronto Fringe Festival Lottery applications will close on November 5th!  Don’t miss your chance to be a part of the 25th Anniversary Fringe Festival.  Apply NOW.

Event: The Creation Lab Open House

Announcing the Fringe OPEN HOUSE – a monthly event in the Fringe Creation Lab where anyone can use the beautiful, loft-style studio spaces for FREE. This is part of our goal to keep the Fringe Creation Lab as accessible we can – we want the Lab to be a resource for rehearsal, professional development, networking and just plain hangin’ out. Inspired by the Centre for Social Innovation HOT DESK project, the OPEN HOUSE is our way of offering artists the opportunity to share resources and workspace.

One Wednesday per month we will open the doors of the Lab to anyone to use for their creative purpose. Need some writing time? Need to learn lines for an audition? Need to stretch and get physical? Just need a space to think amongst creative minds?  All are welcome at the OPEN HOUSE. There are no rules – only empty space waiting to be filled.

You can see why I love this organization. Hopefully something up there piques your interest.

 

 

 

 

Things Cost Time and Money – Quit Devaluing Both

Mission Paradox had a great two-part blog post a couple of weeks ago:

Money and Marketing – Part 1

Money and Marketing – Part 2

Read them both. And when you are done reading both, take a hard look at your organization, your collective, your grant application.

You need to figure out what things actually cost, and put that figure down. Stop guessing, stop putting in a number that makes things balance on the spreadsheet. A spreadsheet is not real life.

What will you get for that amount?

What sort of time and skill will that amount buy you?

Is it a real number?

Opening Night Expenses – $200.

Really? If you have a house of 120 you need food for 120 and a cast and crew of ten and VIPS of another 10  at $7/average a drink ticket?

There’s the type of math to do before you pencil in a number. Is your number based on anything tangible?

“We’ll get it donated.” Great! Put the number in anyway. I guarantee you’ll be able to use that arbitrary $200 somewhere else.  And when you get it donated – does someone have to pick it up? Does that require a car? Access to a refrigerator? Does it include plates and napkins?And who is going to do all that on opening night (because you need to pick up opening night food later in the day, if not during the show). So you’ve saved the money, but you’ve spent the time. What’s your time worth?

Just stuff to think about. I know, it’s first thing on Monday morning, but I woke up thinking about it, so here we are. Probably more on this at another time.

Sunday Round-up October 21

The week after Proud closed was a heck of a week of meetings with folks and included a presentation and a workshop both in one day. And this week I’ll be participating in Arts Day on Parliament Hill and putting together the info for a workshop on the 7th for Arts Consultants Canada.

Anyhoo…

 

The Theatres They Are a`Changin

Burger Broads, Antigone and Stratford makes me Smile

Arts Advocacy and Girls without Hats and a Pentimento Salon

Great week. Next week I`ll tell you all about the Pentimento Salon, and how an apple box nearly upstaged the final presentation. It`s also fall and cooling off out there and everyone seems to have that “the weather’s changing” tickly cough. Put your scarves on.

Arts Advocacy and Girls without Hats and a Pentimento Salon

Yesterday was a great day bookended by a presentation and a workshop. I started my day talking to a room full of bright young things at George Brown – about theatre and why it is important and ended my day talking to a room full of writers, painters and filmmakers about art and why it is important, and how to share that with others. And in between ran into Chris from Small Print, postering for their next happening, Girls Without Hats.

I’ll start today talking about Arts Advocacy and the Upcoming Day at the City (more on that in another post) and end it talking about someone’s art and in between write press releases and finish a social media plan. Life is good. I’m not enjoying that as I write this it’s nearly seven a.m. and still dark, but such is the price we pay for good boots and red lipstick and great hats.

I’m going to this on Friday. Pentimento Salons are always a great time. Have a great day!

Burger Broads, Antigone and Stratford makes me Smile

Next month I am off to a fundraiser called The Burger Ball, hosted by the Burger Broads in support of North America’s only vegetarian food bank.

Wait, what? What’s a Burger Broad?

From the website:

We started this Club in early Spring 2011.This blog went live December 2011. We are motley crew collective of  female burger lovers in Canada,specifically Toronto, who love everything about burgers, any kinda burgers! We are not babes.We are not Barbies.We ARE BROADS! We’re redefining burger culture and most importantly, what it means to be a BROAD We will NEVER  talk about big burger chains! THAT’s a Promise!We share our love of burger culture from meatatarian to vegetarian from all around the World.

Okay then. What’s a vegetarian food bank?

I asked why they were doing a burger-based fundraiser for a vegetarian food bank and got this answer: “because I like to raise funds and awareness for organizations that don’t get much press or monetary help…being Burger Broads,  I figured it should be for a food bank but since DailyBread.ca is a big outfit (and do fine without our help) I wanted to go with The Veg Food Bank. (who knew?! there was such a thing!? I love it!) Also, when people hear the word burger or Burger Broads.. they assume that it is meat… well,  it is but it’s not. A burger can also be a vegetarian burger and we  eat those too!”

Valid question, excellent answer and the idea of having a fundraiser for an organization that doesn’t get much press or financial assistance is something I can get behind. So I’m going. You should too. Burgers, beer and prizes for less than fifty bucks. Click here for details.

Speaking of small organizations, this week I’m seeing Antigone Dead People by Small Wooden Shoe.  Three shows only, am heading to the Friday matinée. You should come, click here for details.

Speaking of things that make me smile (well, we weren’t, but I am, so there you go) – Stratford has succumbed to Gangham Style. Made me smile out loud.

The Theatres They Are a’Changing

(what an annoying title. Am off my game today. Moving on.)

Two articles in as many weeks on similar topics.

Toronto’s smaller theatres write a new script for success

“For years, Torontonians have tended to lump together Passe Muraille, Factory Theatre and Tarragon Theatre, the three mid-sized companies all founded around 1970, housed in downtown venues and dedicated to new Canadian plays. But as theatres find it increasingly difficult to draw audiences, the three Toronto stalwarts are questioning their relationship with theatregoers and with each other. Should each one do more to distinguish itself from the others? Or should the threesome sail together in the belief that a rising tide lifts all boats?”

and

Canadian Stage’s new mantra: Less is more

“The idea of shrinking on purpose or right-sizing an operation is right now very of the moment,” says Roger Gaudet, head of the theatre section of the Canada Council for the Arts. “We’re confronted with the paradox that even though our society in terms of population continues to grow, the economic picture is not necessarily continuing to grow; the model of continued growth is no longer sustainable. [Canadian Stage] is moving forward very quickly on something that everyone’s facing.”

The idea of six or seven shows and a fundraiser has been changing for quite some time. A subscription is not longer buying into six or seven shows, or a standing date the last Wednesday of every month at a theatre. Subscriptions are now flex passes, pick-threes and such. You go when you want, if you want, you bring a friend at the last minute .

On one hand I do genuinely love this. It’s answering a request that has been made for ages. It’s new and exciting and for lack of a better term, keeping up with the times. The very word “subscription” is being redefined, as is the word “subscriber”. On the other hand as someone who anxiously studies ticket sales, walk ups etc it’s a new challenge to face and figure out. And it’s exciting.

I look forward to it.

Sunday Round-up October 14

Some days in the office at home, some days  on the Island, paperwork and organizing for the next rounds of new clients and workshops and STUFF.

Cool Stuff Over and Under the Ground

Other People Might Not Know This

This week brings a sea of potential new client meetings, all of which I’m happy about. It also brings a double workshop day on the 17th: I’ll spend part of my morning talking to a friend’s George Brown class about Indie Producing, and finish the day giving a workshop at Parkdale Library on social media for artists. Wonderful stuff.

Off to Ottawa next week to participate  in Arts Day On Parliament Hill.

I’m also working on a social media strategy for Young Associates, and we’re turning that into a webinar on Nov 7th. Details coming.

And speaking of the Parkdale Library they have a visual art exhibit on called Young Voices and the deadline for the 2013 applications is coming up. Check it out. The photo above is not great but I was balancing books and trying to take the picture and the drawing was up high and well, you get it.

Have a good Sunday, whether you are marathoning on the streets or cooking in your kitchen or deep in a book.

Other People Might Not Know This

I subscribe to an endless number of elists, newsletters etc and the majority of them are not arts focused or even related. I subscribe to them for the same reason I read more than one newspaper – to find out how others are thinking and feeling. You want a more balanced view of things – read NOW and the Sun. I’ll never forget when Canada was thinking about going into Iraq –  the headlines read:

Globe and Mail: Canada Might Go To War
Star: It’s War!
Sun: Third Baby Cloned!

You see where I’m going with this.

Anyway – so many of the headlines on these articles, elists etc are focused on embracing creativity, finding the creative way to do things, determining how to connect with people – things people in the arts tend to do every day. So every so often I need to stop and read about how these ideas are being presented to others, from a different perspective. We need to get past the idea that everyone has the skill set to do the things we do. That’s how we’ll make what we do valuable to them. And that’s what will make them say yes when we ask them to dance.

Today’s headline: Is storytelling important or all hype?

WELL OF COURSE IT IS. You might as well ask me if brushing my teeth is important or all hype. But for some, “storytelling” is a catchphrase, like creativity is a buzz word.

Anyway  – here’s the article.

I’m on the Island for a couple of days, staying at Artscape Lodge. Here was the view from the beach last night near sunset. The wind and the waves were so incredibly loud you’d have to shout over them. I couldn’t hear myself think. And sometimes tha’s what you need.

Cool Stuff Over and Under the Ground

Seems like there’s always a posting about something cool happening artistically in Europe. Here are three cool things happening at and under the street right here at home. Watch for them.

The Songbook Series – Theatre Passe Muraille
The Songbook Series is part of After Hours @ TPM, a late-night cabaret series to compliment the season at Theatre Passe Muraille. Each evening, they celebrate the work of a single artist, group, era or style that has had a significant impact on our collective musical history. Then they invite a variety of musicians from all disciplines to re-imagine that music in their own way. Re-imagination is key— they are NOT looking for a simple acoustic cover. Last season, they featured the music of Elton John, Madonna and The Beach Boys.

 

Beneath the Surface – October 2012

Celebrating WORKMAN ARTS 25^th Anniversary and World Mental Health DayBeneath the Surface is a collection of artist projects exploring what is hidden, sublimated, or just out of reach, to mark World Mental Health Day on Wednesday, October 10, 2012.

In the very public milieu of the subway platform, visual stories created by 6 Toronto-based artists will play every 10 minutes on the network of Pattison Onestop’s TTC subway platform screens throughout Toronto from October 6 to October 14, 2012. (Image by Catherine Jones: The Red Shoes)

and

Theatre Centre begins work on new home

On Oct. 11 the Theatre Centre, now operating out of pop-up space at 1095 Queen Street West, will begin construction to retrofit the historic Carnegie Library at 1115 Queen Street West to create a new, assessable and community oriented arts hub.

All of this is alarmingly appropriate to be thankful for.